The story goes that throngs of neighborhood children would greet Louis Armstrong's bus when he returned home from touring. This weekend, as the city pays tribute to its native son at the eighth annual Satchmo Summerfest, children will once again be drawn to the man with the trumpet at the Louisiana State Museum's Old U.S. Mint, which will have an expanded children's area.

"Louis Armstrong influenced so many young people and loved children, " said Marci Schramm, executive director of French Quarter Festivals Inc., which produces the annual free festival that features four stages of music. "We love kids, too, so this year it was really important to us to bring back the children's stage and all of the activities that draw families down to the Quarter in addition to music."

The event includes three days of panels and seminars at the Mint. And while mom and dad take turns checking out the free Satchmo Seminar Series on Armstrong and jazz featuring scholars, musicians, historians and even Armstrong's former record producer, children can sample the kid-friendly food and snowballs and check out the activities.

Tulane's Children Hospital will host face-painting and crafts tables while the Louisiana State Museum will offer a "Treasures of Napoleon Scavenger Hunt" at the Mint (admission to the Napoleon exhibit is free during the festival). The Audubon Insectarium will sponsor a bug show-and-tell and the New Orleans Jazz Historical Park Service will teach children how to become junior rangers.

Jennfier Zdon / The Times-Picayune ArchiveIf you've never heard Charmaine Neville channel Louis Armstrong, be sure to get front and center Saturday afternoon when she performs on the Children's Stage.

Along with performances by two brass bands made up of students from the New Orleans Center for the Creative Arts, children can learn how to decorate Zulu coconuts, led by members of the Zulu Social Aid and Pleasure Club's Junior Zulus. They can visit the New Orleans Jazz Centennial's Celebration Station on Saturday and Sunday and decorate second-line umbrellas that they can put to festive use late Sunday afternoon during a second-line parade at the children's stage. (Children can get a head start tonight at 5 at the Satchmo Club Strut Second Line Creation Station in Washington Square Park, 700 Elysian Fields Ave., where they can make umbrellas, sashes and corsages for the family-friendly Satchmo Club Strut down Frenchmen Street.)

"Before the storm there was always a children's area and a stage, " Schramm said. "We're such a family festival that it was important to have an area once again dedicated to children."

On Sunday at noon, the family can head over to St. Augustine Church, 1210 Gov. Nicholls St., for the Jazz Mass featuring the Treme Brass Band; it will be followed by a second-line parade to Armstrong Park and then on to the Mint. (Seating is limited, so get there early).

Schramm said she hopes this weekend's events will encourage families to embrace the city's musical heritage.

"This is a city that has so much to offer young musicians, " she said. "We hope all the families take the time to not only enjoy the music, but also think about becoming a part of Armstrong's legacy by learning more about jazz."

MUSICAL LINEUP

SATURDAY, AUG. 2

Traditional Jazz Stage

11-noon: Tim Laughlin

12:15-1:30 p.m.: Connie Jones Crescent City Jazz Band

1:45-3 p.m.: Yoshio Toyama & the Dixie Saints

3:15-4:30 p.m.: Chris Clifton & His Allstars

4:45-6 p.m.: Preservation Hall Jazz Band Tribute to John Brunious

Brass Band Stage

11-noon: Mo'LASSES, New Orleans' (mostly) Women's Brass Band

12:15-1:30 p.m.: Storyville Stompers Brass Band

1:45-3 p.m.: Rebirth Brass Band

3:15-4:30 p.m.: Glen David Andrews & The Lazy Six

4:45-6 p.m.:- Soul Rebels Brass Band

Contemporary Jazz Stage

11-12 p.m.: Magnetic Ear

12:15-1:30 p.m.: Va Va Voom

1:45-3 p.m.: Phillip Manuel

3:15-4:30 p.m.: Shamarr Allen & The Underdawgs

4:45-6 p.m.: NOTMC presents Jeremy Davenport

Children's Stage

11-11:50 a.m.: Kids Program with the Treme Brass Band

Noon-12:30 p.m.: Journey of the Drum with Michael Skinkus and Sula Evans

1-1:50 p.m.: Jamelle Williams & the New Orleans Slick 6

2-2:45 p.m.: Papillion Kid Pirates

3-3:50 p.m.: Ivoire Spectacle: Music of the Ivory Coast with Geguenon Kone

Louis "Satchmo" Armstrong Memorial Jazz MassSt. Augustine Church, 1210 Gov. Nicholls St. The Mass is held 10 a.m. Sunday, Aug. 3, and features The Treme Brass Band and the St. Augustine Soulful Voices Choir, directed by Carol Leblanc. A luncheon follows in the church hall. $6. Call 504.525.5934.